Hanoi, 20 May 2019 – Donal Brown, Associate Vice-President of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) visited the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam this week to review progress made together to improve lives and reduce poverty in rural areas.

The purpose of the visit is to explore ways that IFAD can continue to contribute to Viet Nam’s efforts to reach the first and second Sustainable Development Goals, which focus on ending poverty and hunger by 2030.

During Brown’s visit met Tran Xuan Ha, Vice-Minister, Ministry of Finance, and they will attend the 25th Anniversary of Partnerships, Innovations and Rural Transformation event to discuss the country’s rural development pathway together with other high-level ministers and development partners.

“Viet Nam has made impressive progress in transforming its economy in a very short time span, but there is still work to be done. In rural areas poverty gains are fragile and a portion of the population risk slipping back into poverty. IFAD stands ready to continue to support the government in addressing these challenges,” said Brown before his visit.

The delegation also travelled to the Ben Tre province to visit income-generating and climate adaptation activities undertaken under the Adaptation to Climate Change in the Mekong Delta project. These activities include guiding smallholder farmers and rural households to work with the private sector to learn to grow and process organic coconuts and safe vegetables, produce clean soil and to breed salinity-tolerant sea ducks. The visit will also include meeting with members of a women’s credit and savings groups who have received microcredit and training to start their own small businesses.